Bridges for Kindergarten

[Anonymous]

I hear there are openings. We are waitlisted everywhere and anxious! When I searched the archives I found a lot of great things about PS and PK. Is this going to be their first year having Kindergarten? If not, can someone please tell me how the Kindergarten program is and anything else that is relevant about the school in general? Thanks!

[Anonymous]

Set up a tour and see how you feel about it. I've only heard positive things about Bridges.

[Anonymous]

This will be the second year of kindergarten. The school is expanding so like many other charter schools that have little to no track record, it is a leap of faith. The reputation for preschool is excellent and assuming the same thought and care is put into the expansion that was put into developing an excellent preschool program, Bridges is going to turn into a very sought after elementary school. My child was PK3 and will now be PK4 so I can not comment about the Kindergarten curriculum, but I only heard good things about the kindergarten teachers. We like their literacy focus and they have been clear about what kind of math curriculum will be implemented. We have friends with kids in other charter schools who say they have no real understanding of the curriculum - this is not the case with Bridges. The principal is very clear in explanations of the curriculum. We feel lucky to have gotten in last year and plan to stay as the school expands, unless something changes for the worse or our child turns out to have some needs that we do not believe the school can address sufficiently. You should definitely consider it.

[Anonymous]

My daughter just finished kindergarten at Bridges and she can't wait to go back for first grade (she went to PS 3 & 4 @ Bridges as well). Her teachers were fantastic -- incredibly organized, patient, innovative, kind. The support in the school is great. When I would go in in the mornings and see kids returning their "reading bags" (they took home a book every night), it was clear that they had a big range of reading levels -- from kids reading short chapter books (can't recall that series, but things my older daughter read in 1st grade) to kids who were working on fewer than ten sight words -- and clearly all were being supported. I love the elementary school principal, Mr. Patrick. The playground at Sharpe Health Campus, where the elementary grades are, is fantastic and right there. I am a huge Bridges fan, so I'm biased, of course, but I've had 3 kids in 3 different K classes -- parochial school and DCPS, as well as Bridges -- and the Bridges class was the smallest and offered the most support for each kid as a learner.

[Anonymous]

This is their second year with kindergarten. The kindergarten classes take place at the Sharpe Health campus (just up the road from the main campus).

The teachers there are great. The facilities themselves aren't amazing, but what matters is great teaching and Bridges has that. I've never heard anyone really say anything negative about Bridges.

[Anonymous]

Is this school just for Special Ed? I just visited their website as I'm interested and it seems that most all the staff titles are based on that. If so, are the classes separated. I would think so but just asking. TIA

[Anonymous]

No, it's definitely not just for Special Ed. They just operate on an inclusion model, meaning that high-functioning special ed students are included in the general education classroom if they're able.

Basically, they're really good at individualized instruction for kids - whether that means special ed kids or typically functioning kids.

[Anonymous]

Are there really openings for K? I applied after the lottery closed, so theoretically I should have been added to the bottom of the waitlist, but I haven't been called. Should I call them?

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Are there really openings for K? I applied after the lottery closed, so theoretically I should have been added to the bottom of the waitlist, but I haven't been called. Should I call them?

They have gone entirely through their waitlists in pre-K. K, and 1.

[Anonymous]

They have gone entirely through their waitlists in pre-K. K, and 1.

unless they are hugely expanding, this would imply people are eithern ot taking slots or leaving in droves, creating lots of slots. Is this the case? I hear nothing but good about bridges, yet if there is great attrition, why?

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Are there really openings for K? I applied after the lottery closed, so theoretically I should have been added to the bottom of the waitlist, but I haven't been called. Should I call them?

Yes. I would call.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

They have gone entirely through their waitlists in pre-K. K, and 1.

unless they are hugely expanding, this would imply people are eithern ot taking slots or leaving in droves, creating lots of slots. Is this the case? I hear nothing but good about bridges, yet if there is great attrition, why?

I think it's just a growing pain due to their expansion. Until they offer all the way up to 5th grade (which they will in a few years) they'll have to deal with kids leaving to be at the same school as their siblings.

[Anonymous]

Just called them. They are NOT all the way through the K waiting list, just to be clear. They are moving through it quickly, but there are still names on it.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Just called them. They are NOT all the way through the K waiting list, just to be clear. They are moving through it quickly, but there are still names on it.

Well, that's very strange, because we did not apply during the lottery and got in two weeks ago without being wait-listed.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Just called them. They are NOT all the way through the K waiting list, just to be clear. They are moving through it quickly, but there are still names on it.

That's strange because we've been accepted into the Pre-K3 program and in the materials they sent home to Parents, they explicitly mentioned having K & 1st grade spots open. They asked us to "spread the word". They even mentioned picking up a flyer at the main office.